Romance scammer ‘Giovanni’ poses as deployed soldier on dating sites and dupes women out of millions: Feds

A Nigerian national who went by various versions of the name “Giovanni” on dating websites defrauded several women out of more than $3 million, saying he needed money for various bogus reasons such as his father’s funeral and son’s tuition, authorities said.

Franklin Ikechukwu Nwadialo, 40, was indicted on 14 counts of wire fraud, charges for which he could face up to 20 years in prison, prosecutors said. Nwadialo was traveling from Nigeria when he was arrested upon arrival at an airport in Texas, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced in a Tuesday press release.

“All too often the defendants in these romance scams are overseas and unreachable by U.S. law enforcement,” said U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. “I congratulate investigators who are alert to any opportunity to arrest such defendants and hold them accountable.”

The indictment spells out the allegations of a scheme that occurred between December 2019 and December 2023. Nwadialo used fake profile photos and told the victims he was in the military and deployed overseas, so he could not meet them in person, authorities said.

His alleged victims were older, often widowed or divorced, court documents said.

He allegedly sent victims messages through online dating services that deceived them into believing they were in a romantic relationship.

Court documents allege the victims depleted their accounts and sometimes used up their entire savings.

In one case, in November 2020, a victim identified in court documents as J.C. was contacted by someone named “Antonio25 Giovanni,” who claimed to be an officer in the U.S. military and used his purported profession as an excuse for being unable to meet J.C. in person.

“After duping J.C. into believing that she was in a romantic relationship, ‘Giovanni’ induced J.C. to send him funds using false and fraudulent statements,” court documents said. “As one example, ‘Giovanni’ falsely claimed to have been fined $150,000 for violating the military’s code of conduct by disclosing his location to J.C. and asked J.C. to help pay this fine.”

J.C. liquidated her dead husband’s retirement account, used her home as collateral for a loan, and ultimately sold her home — to the tune of at least $2.4 million, court documents said.

After depleting J.C. of her savings, he sent a message to her stating “Giovanni” died while on a foreign mission, court documents said.

In December 2019, a man named “Tony Giovanni” contacted another victim, identified as N.F., court documents said.

“Tony Giovanni” falsely told N.F. he was a soldier for the U.S. military and used his military background as an excuse for being unable to meet in person, court documents said.

After gaining N.F.’s trust, “Giovanni” began asking for help paying for taxes, funeral costs, and other expenses stemming from his father’s purported death, authorities alleged.

“Giovanni” also asked N.F. to send and receive funds purportedly on his behalf, claiming he had issues accessing his financial accounts, court documents added.

In another instance, “David Giovanni” initially communicated with a victim identified as A.M. He told her he couldn’t meet her in person because he worked in information technology and had a contract with the U.S. military, court documents said. He allegedly sent her a fake video and pictures he claimed were of him, court documents said.

In August 2020, “Antoni Giovanni” got a woman to send money for his father’s purported funeral expenses, and he also got her to help pay for his alleged son’s school expenses, court documents said.

Nwadialo was currently being held at a federal prison in Houston, online records show.

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